Samsung uses Corning’s new Gorilla Armor 2 glass on the S25 Ultra, which is said to have 29 percent better resistance to fracture than the original Gorilla Armor on the Galaxy S24 Ultra. Interestingly, Samsung says there has been a 60 percent drop in screen repairs from the S24 over the S23 series, which could mean the S25 is more durable. The phone is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, which has debuted in phones like the Honor. Magic 7 Pro and OnePlus 13. This will be the processor in all Samsung Galaxy S25 series phones globally, unlike in previous years when Samsung chose its own. Exynos chips in some markets. Samsung claims this chip offers a 37 percent CPU upgrade, a 30 percent graphics boost, and a 40 percent better neural processing unit compared to the S24 series. Samsung and Qualcomm collaborate on chip optimization, and the close tie has enabled new features like ProScaler. On the S25 Ultra and S25+, this feature can increase the image on the screen to match the display resolution. Say you’re browsing Instagram and someone uploads a 1,080p image—it’ll be upscaled to QHD+. The vapor chamber cooling system is larger in all three—an important component in keeping the phone from overheating during intense gaming sessions—with the chamber on the S25 Ultra getting a 40 percent bump in size. Samsung also said that sitting on top of the new chip “thermal interface material” that leaves zero gaps for air, drawing heat from the processor directly to the cooling system of the room to improve performance and reduce stress on the battery. Arguably the most disappointing part of the hardware story is the lack of support for Qi2 power. This is a new version of the Qi wireless charging standard, which borrows many features from Apple’s MagSafe charging system. Features a magnet to the phone, allowing users to magnetically attach the phone to the Qi2 charger for more efficient and faster wireless charging, plus magnetic accessories to enhance the phone. I was hoping to see some Qi2 Android phones in 2024, but all I got was the Skyline HMD. Now, in a move that will make things even more confusing, the Galaxy S25 series is classified as “Qi2 ready.” This is a new classification for phones that do not have built-in magnets but will have official and third-party features. case Qi2 party with magnets inside, essentially bring the same if not the same magnetic experience as a proper Qi2 device. Android users who want the MagSafe utility have had to rely on the case until now, so it’s a shame that Qi2 still isn’t a native part of these new phones. Galaxy S25 Ultra now packs 50 megapixels instead of 12. Samsung says this in turn improves the quality of macro photos. There are some more interesting changes to the image processing algorithm. Samsung’s next-generation ProVisual engine uses a “spatial-temporal filter” to distinguish between moving and stationary objects to ensure photo subjects are not blurred when shooting in low-light conditions. Double noise removal analyzes each pixel for noise, looks at eight surrounding pixels, and removes noise to clean up the image.
